The London Science Museum has ended its decades-long partnership with the oil and gas company BP. The Science Museum Group academy, established in 2018, announced on Friday that it would be concluding its collaboration with BP.
Sir Ian Blatchford, director and chief executive of the Science Museum Group, stated that the partnership had "drawn to a close at the end of the current contract term." He noted that BP's contributions had supported training and resources for over 11,000 education, museum, and science professionals, reaching more than 1 million young people.
The relationship between BP and the Science Museum has faced scrutiny from campaigners, who accused the company of having an "insidious influence" on STEM education. Chris Garrard of Culture Unstained described the decision as a "seismic shift" following years of campaigning and pressure from educators and schools, some of whom had pledged to boycott museum trips.
The museum previously cut ties with oil company Equinor in 2024 due to its failure to align with the Paris climate agreement's goal of limiting global heating to 1.5C. However, Garrard also noted that the museum continues to receive funding from Adani Green Energy Ltd, a subsidiary of the Adani Group, which is a major coal mining and energy conglomerate.